CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Phillies have gotten a huge spring out of Domonic Brown, and that has helped him secure one of the corner outfield spots in the regular season — right field to open the season, with a move to left field when and if Delmon Young is ready for action.

Until Young is ready to join the Phils as he works his way back from offseason microfracture ankle surgery, the Phillies have another outfield opening. One would think that the platoon combination of Laynce Nix and John Mayberry Jr. would be the choice for that duty.

However, those veterans — both of whom were disappointments last season — have had lackluster springs. So some eyebrows lifted Tuesday when the starting left fielder for the Phils in their 10-1 win over Tampa Bay at wind-blown Bright House Field was ... Freddy Galvis.

Galvis spends time during batting practice fielding fly balls, but this was his first start at an outfield spot.

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“You could put (Galvis) behind the dish with some catcher’s gear on and he’d make an adjustment,” said Ryne Sandberg, who served as manager while Charlie Manuel had some dental work done Tuesday.

Galvis played a few innings in right field against the Orioles Saturday, and the Phillies are maintaining this is nothing more than an attempt to stretch his versatility in a pinch.

However, Manuel says he wants to get Galvis 300 or more plate appearances, and at the moment that third outfield spot might be the best option. While Mayberry (.194) and Nix (.212) are hovering around the Mendoza Line this spring, Galvis kept hitting Tuesday. He followed a home run in the fifth inning with an RBI single in the sixth. His 12 extra-base hits this spring leads the Phillies — it’s double the combined total of Nix and Mayberry this spring, and one more than talk-of-the-town Brown. His 2-for-4 outing against the Rays pushed his Grapefruit League average to .300.

“You know what, compared to last year I’ve noticed he has bulked up a bit, and the added maturity has shown in the extra pop in his bat,” Sandberg said of the 23-year-old. “I think it works with his whole game, that extra strength. I think it’s just him growing up a bit.

“He uses the whole field. He’s line-to-line, uses the gaps, can go down the third-base line, pull it down the first-base line. He’s a switch hitter, and both ways he hits, he uses the whole field. A guy like that is tough to defend. He finds the gaps. Now he has the extra pop, he’s driving the ball over the outfielders’ heads, popping some home runs. That’s a pleasant surprise this early in his development, but I think it’s a very good thing.”

In the field, Galvis was far more at home than you’d think a career infielder would be. While he probably should have been in a better position to back up one play in the gap (although the ball was caught), he made easy work of the chances he got.

“It’s not too much different. I feel good so far,” Galvis said of the outfield. “I’m going to be ready to help the team. So far, it feels good. Right now I’m trying to go to third base and the outfield before the game. Last year I played second base, so I have that experience, and I have been a shortstop my whole life.”

“You know, he’s a baseball player,” Sandberg said. “I saw him two years ago in Triple-A and that was the first word that came out of my mouth: This guy has baseball instincts. He has a knack for being in the right place at the right time, positioning himself, getting good jumps. He puts a lot of thought into the swings and who he’s defending. And he reads the ball really well off the bat. So I think if you put him anywhere on the field, those things will show.

“That was a good challenge for him out in left field, day like today. He positioned himself well, playing shallow to account for the wind. It’s pretty good experience out there in case he’s needed.”

* * *

The Phillies made an interesting move Tuesday morning, releasing veteran right-hander Aaron Cook, who seemed very much in line to be the first man in if the Phils have any issues with their starting rotation, and Roy Halladay has been something of an issue all spring.

“It was our decision,” assistant general manager Scott Proefrock said. “We had to decide whether to release him, whether to pay him the $100,000 retention bonus or promise that we would add him to the roster before Opening Day, and we decided to release him.

“Ruben (Amaro Jr.) had conversations with the agent and the player and ultimately we decided this was the best thing for all involved.”

However, just because Cook was released — he was due a $100,000 payment if he was sent to Triple-A — doesn’t mean that’s the end of the story. It will be interesting to see if he signs anywhere prior to Thursday afternoon. That’s when Halladay is scheduled to throw 85 to 90 pitches in his last preseason start against the Blue Jays.

The Phillies are permitted to re-sign Cook to a big-league deal, if he isn’t inked by another team.

The Phillies have a few starting prospects who are close to big-league ready, but they could be on the lookout for an experienced starter to add. At the moment, the starting rotation for Triple-A Lehigh Valley in Jonathan Pettibone, Adam Morgan, Tyler Cloyd, Ethan Martin and B.J. Rosenberg, who didn’t win a spot in the Phils’ bullpen and is stretching out to work as a starter again.

NOTES

Raul Valdes started for the Phils Tuesday and allowed one run in three innings, striking out five. The southpaw is all but assured to be a middle reliever for the Phils along with Jeremy Horst (two scoreless innings). “Raul has been fantastic,” pitching coach Rich Dubee said. “He’s a strike thrower.” ... After a few days where he seemed a little off, Brown had his swing back in a big way Tuesday, tattooing a pair of doubles and a single to push his spring average up to .373. ... Cole Hamels will start against Detroit today in Lakeland, but will throw just three innings as he prepares for his opening-day start in Atlanta Monday.